The case:
When two recent applicants to the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor received rejection letters, they decided to sue the prestigious school, claiming they were victims of the school's affirmative action policies. The University of Michigan's admissions office used a point-based tool to evaluate each applicant against a range of criteria, including race. The two denied applicants argued that these admissions policies discriminated against them.

The case eventually made its way to the Supreme Court, which ruled that schools may continue to consider race as a determining factor in admissions decisions, but they need to be "flexible, holistic, and individualized." Say what?

The breakdown:
In simple terms, the court ruled that race cannot be the overriding factor in making admissions decisions. That doesn't mean that race can no longer have an impact on admissions decisions. Instead, the University of Michigan and other schools may still consider applicants' race, but they must weigh other factors as well. The court's decision directly addressed admissions only at public, tax-supported institutions, but the ruling has already had an impact on admissions policies at private colleges and universities, too.

Julie Peterson, associate vice president for media relations and public affairs at the University of Michigan explains, "There is a misconception Michigan had to do away with considering race, but the reality is the court basically said affirmative action should remain. We are committed to building a diverse class." Indeed, colleges and universities have interpreted the ruling as a defense of their right to consider race in admissions procedures so that they may achieve a diverse student body.

The practice:
In response to the court's decision, the University of Michigan now assigns two individual admissions officials to review each application separately. If their conclusions are consistent, they finalize and process the application for acceptance or rejection; if they don't see eye to eye, the application goes through a broader review. In addition, to get a more complete view of applicants' backgrounds, the University of Michigan revised its application to include essay questions that address socioeconomic issues.

How this decision affects you
So, what's the deal? As you get ready to complete those apps, will your race or ethnicity help or hurt your chances of admission? We turned to a jury of pros for their take.

Jaclyn Shapiro, a college admissions counselor with IvyWise, a New York-based private educational admissions counseling service, advises students to identify their racial or ethnic group because it is likely a large part of who they are as a person. "A major part of the college application process is revealing who you are and how you think to the college admissions officers," says Shapiro. "Leaving out racial, ethnic, or religious identities can be a big mistake for those students for whom their culture is important. These days, colleges are not just looking at grades and test scores--they are looking at the whole person."

Cheryl Brown, director of admissions at Binghamton University, State University of New York, agrees, noting the ethnicity question is optional on Binghamton's application. "We hope students will fill out the question because it gives us more information about the context of the student's credentials. We want to know lots of things about candidates--their motivation, goals, interests, activities, honors, awards, and community service."

So when you complete the application, should you leave the race question blank or fill it out? "Some students ask this question because they worry if they are accepted, it is only as a result of their status as an underrepresented minority," Shapiro says. However, she adds, colleges really do have good intentions when wanting to know more about you.

"It isn't so much about favoring a student based upon race, but about creating a certain type of learning environment within which all students will benefit," explains Shapiro. "Also, colleges are concerned with putting together a freshman class that is diverse in many ways. Students have many ways to stand out--as athletes, musicians, artists, writers, etc."

Still, it's natural to wonder how admissions officers weigh race in their admissions process. "Race neither helps nor hurts applicants [at Binghamton]," says Brown. "We consider it a factor, just like we consider socioeconomic status, first-generation college attendance, new immigrant status, interests, talents, and of course, the academic issues of course preparation, test scores, grades, etc."

The same goes for the University of Michigan, notes Peterson. "Race is only one of the many factors we look at. The application is a chance for each individual student to show us who they are."

Alternative actions
Some schools, however, like Arizona State University (ASU) in Tempe, Arizona, don't even ask for race on their applications. As Tim Desch, director of admissions, explains, his school has never used affirmative action in their application process. Instead, they believe in recruiting students well before the application process starts.

"We aim to help students aspire to higher education and make the pool more diverse well in advance of applying," he notes. Admissions officers work closely with local school districts early on to bring students to campus because oftentimes, they don't have a concept of what a university is like. As he explains, they strive to help all students who have barriers or think college is unattainable.

In fact, ASU has mentoring programs in grade schools and middle schools, so by their junior or senior year of high school, students are on track to attend the university. ASU also hosts summer math and science institutes and workshops as well as seminars like Engineering for Women. "We want to become a full-fledged player to increase graduation rates in high school and increase college graduation rates whether they go to ASU or another school," says Desch. "It's just about doing the right things so they get to high school and have opportunities. If it happens to be ASU that's great, but that's not our sole purpose."

The verdict
While some schools factor race into their admissions process and others don't, in the end, it's important to be true to yourself. All schools look at the whole picture when you apply. So ace those SATs, keep your GPA up, and tell your top-choice schools who you really are--you're sure to find a fit.